Restaurant Fitzcarraldo

Location:
Napo 100, at the corner of Napo and Malecón
Iquitos, Peru

Restaurant

By Kris Dreessen

One of the most popular restaurants on the main Iquitos promenade is Fitzcarraldo Restaurant and Bar, which pays homage to one of the region's most famous entrepreneurs. During the rubber boom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Irishman Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald was a rubber baron who had a wild dream—to open an opera house in the Amazon, in Manaus, Brazil. Called Fitzcarraldo because the locals couldn't pronounce his name, he became famous for how he tried to make his fortune: he dismantled and moved a 32-ton boat from one river to another, through the jungle, to reach rubber trees. His story was inspiration for German director Werner Herzog's 1982 film, "Fitzcarraldo," starring Klaus Kinksi.

Herzog got famous for having his own crazy ideas, like pulling a really heavy steel boat across a small mountain during filming. Kinski's shock-blonde hair leaps out at diners in photo stills from the film that hang on the walls in Fitzcarraldo.

Fitzcarraldo restaurant has a reputation as one of the best for quality in town and offers a varied menu. Lunch includes hot and cold options, such as a grilled steak sandwich served on a submarine-like roll. Dinner features grilled meats, traditional dishes and some meals from the jungle for the more adventurous, such as grilled caiman (alligator). The chef also serves up cebiche, or ceviche, which is fresh raw fish or shrimp, marinated in lemon juice and chili peppers and served chilled.

A restaurant like Fitzcarraldo is a good place to try ceviche because of the stock turnover and its reputation for high-quality food. Other regional dishes are made with dorado, a regional fish, and the giant paiche, the largest freshwater fish in the world. Grilled steaks are available as is lomo saltado—strips of stir-fry beef. Pork and chicken are also staples, served grilled or with sauces.

Meals are often accompanied by french fries and ensalada palmito, which is a light, cold salad of hearts of palm. Drinks include pisco sour cocktails (the main ingredients are brandy, lemon and egg whites), beer, coffee and juice, both bottled and fresh. Daily offerings of fresh-squeezed juices vary from pineapple to passion fruit.

The main room is cozy, with about 20 tables, and a small bar at one end. There is a patio dining area and two open-air entrances at Fitzcarraldo, which give diners a good view of the action on the promenade, where street performers are drawing crowds a few feet away. This openness, however, is also a magnet for people to congregate in the doorway asking for money or selling everything from gum to hand-dyed tablecloths. Restaurant staff usually ask them to leave, but there are times when diners chat and chew while people stare and gesture, or are approached at the table. Fitzcarraldo is a mid-range to high-end restaurant in Iquitos, but laid back enough that visitors can feel comfortable ordering a drink and relaxing.

Price Description: Fresh juices cost about $1.50 (5 nuevo soles); lunches, $3 to $6 (9 to 19 nuevo soles); dinners start at $5 (16 nuevo soles). mid-range is about $7 (22 soles). ceviche and other specialties are more expensive.

Contact Information:
Phone: 51-65-243-434